


Feels Like Summer

by kihyukie



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: (or technically the summer after), Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Kissing, M/M, Mark is whipped, Misunderstandings, Pining, Underage Drinking, a couple other characters are there for like 0.5 seconds, only a tiny bit again i promise, renjun is mans best friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-12
Updated: 2018-11-12
Packaged: 2019-08-22 20:51:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16605245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kihyukie/pseuds/kihyukie
Summary: If Mark was being honest, this was the worst possible time for his crush on Donghyuck to come to light. Now that they had graduated, he naturally assumed Donghyuck would leave to some university in the fall and Mark would stay behind, forgotten. At least without having to see Donghyuck everyday, Mark figured he would be able to get over this silly crush.(If you could call a crush on your best friend of six years a silly crush.)All Mark had to do was survive the summer.





	Feels Like Summer

**Author's Note:**

> in honour of atlas reaching (almost) 100 kudos heres 8.1k of markhyuck content i pulled out of my ass, enjoy!

(i.)

Summer always made Mark anxious. 

Summer marked the end of another school year. It marked the beginning of what was supposed to be a time of discovery. Summer made Mark feel like he was running out of time. 

“Come on, live a little,” Renjun whined from where he was seated beside Mark on the couch. It was hot, insufferably so, which is why they found themselves inside Renjun’s house, three fans on full blast. Jaemin and Chenle were sprawled across the floor by Mark’s feet - something about the floor being colder.

It was the second day of summer break and already Mark couldn’t wait for it to be over. 

“I think I’m feeling a cold coming on,” Mark faked a cough, hoping it was the least bit convincing. One glance at his friend told him his plot wasn’t working. Unsuccessfully, Renjun had been trying for the last several minutes to get his friends to come to a party his brother was throwing as he was graduating college. An invitation had been extended to Renjun and his friends since they had recently graduated high school themselves.

To say he wasn’t a big fan of parties would be an understatement; Mark much prefered to curl up with a book and dream about how much further along he should be in life by now. Being surrounded by drunk, sweaty, hormonal teens and twenty-somethings was not his ideal way to spend the night. 

Once, Mark had complained to Renjun about it - the feeling of inadequacy that threatened to swallow him whole some nights. The feeling that his life wasn’t going anywhere. The other had simply told him if he took some risks instead of avoiding everything he might have actually gotten somewhere by now. Mark recalled why he never went to Renjun for advice.

“Donghyuck will be there,” Renjun offered, the look on his face made Mark feel like he was being watched. There was no way Renjun could know, right? Mark had never admitted his crush out loud. Nor was he ready to admit that said crush might be big enough that it was impossible to hide it from those around him. Panic overtook Mark for a second; did Donghyuck know?

“Of course. He’s graduating too,” Mark tried to keep his voice steady. He could hear Chenle snicker from his spot on the floor. Had Renjun told him? 

Mark was aware that he was Renjun’s target because he was going to be the harder one to win over. Jaemin, who quite enjoyed social events, would likely agree with little hesitation. There was no issue in trying to get Chenle to tag along too since it was unlikely his parents would let him go; Renjun and Mark both knowing he would agree in a heartbeat regardless, so there wasn’t much of a fight there. 

If Mark was being honest, this was the worst possible time for his crush on Donghyuck to come to light. Now that they had graduated, he naturally assumed Donghyuck would leave to some university in the fall and Mark would stay behind, forgotten. (Mark had already decided to take a year off to figure what he actually wanted to pursue out before enrolling anywhere and wasting all his money). At least without having to see Donghyuck everyday, Mark figured he would be able to get over this silly crush. 

(If you could call a crush on your best friend of six years a silly crush.)

All Mark had to do was survive the summer. 

“So, is that a yes?” Jaemin asked as he moved to lean against the couch. He kicked Chenle by accident in the process, the younger muffling an  _ ouch _ before Jaemin leaned forward, reaching for Chenle’s cheeks in his attempt at an apology. With practiced ease the youngest moved out of Jaemin’s grip, causing the pink haired boy to start sulking. 

Remembering Renjun’s advice to stop sitting idle and do something for once Mark thought that maybe his friend had a point. If this really was going to be his last summer with Donghyuck around, Mark didn’t want to waste it. He was tired of feeling time slip through his fingers like sand. 

“I guess.”

 

Mark couldn’t help but slightly regret his decision. 

After being abandoned by Renjun exactly two minutes into arriving, Mark was currently in the kitchen with Jaemin, each with a drink in hand. Mark’s was still full. He was never one for drinking much, even if it was legal now. 

Neither of them had seen Donghyuck yet. 

“You know you don’t have to stay,” Jaemin offered. Mark wondered if it was obvious how out of place he felt. Getting together with his friends to celebrate their gradation would have been bearable, but combining a party with Sicheng and all his older college friends left Mark in the deep end. 

Jaemin was more in his element, but he also had a larger social life than Mark, probably due to the fact he was in the dance club (which was how they met Renjun in the first place).

_ It would be a waste if I didn’t get to see Donghyuck. _ “I told Renjun I would come.” 

“Yeah, but now he’s nowhere in sight.” Jaemin motioned to where it seemed everyone minus Renjun was moving about in the house. He had never even told them where he was off to; he was just there one moment and gone the next. 

“He’ll be back...probably,” Mark said, mostly trying to convince himself that standing around a house overcrowded with people, shitty music blaring out of an equally shitty speaker, his crush nowhere in sight was worth it. 

Mark wasn’t wrong. Another half hour of talking to people from Jaemin’s dance club he barely knew and Renjun resurfaced dragging along Jeno and perhaps surprisingly, Donghyuck. 

It was obvious the other boys - Renjun included - had drank more than both Mark and Jaemin conbimbed. The scheming look on Renjun’s face frightened Mark for a moment before his eyes landed on Donghyuck. Immediately, Mark felt his ears heat up and hoped to god it wasn’t noticeable. If anything he could play it off as a side effect of the alcohol (that he hadn’t drank yet, but they didn’t need to know that).

He would never,  _ never _ get tired of Donghyuck’s beauty. Donghyuck’s dark eyes whose gaze always seemed to find Mark, the long lashes that framed them and the feeling of warmth and safety they brought with them. The beauty marks covering his face and neck that Mark absolutely adored. His red hair, (which had been growing longer, black roots emerging again), that made him look softer and tempted Mark to run his fingers through it on a daily basis. 

Tonight though, his hair was pushed back, showing his forehead. It made him look sharp, older,  _ dangerous _ . Mark knew it was probably because of the alcohol, but there was a lot less tension in Donghyuck’s features - he looked a lot more relaxed. It was a beautiful sight to take in.

“Hey,” he greeted softly as he moved to stand beside Mark. 

That was enough to snap Mark out of his thoughts. “Hi,” he all but whispered back. Feeling eyes burning into him Mark turned to see Renjun glaring at him from where he was wrapped around Jeno. 

They were a cute couple. Renjun had an arm wrapped around Jeno’s waist, Jeno using his boyfriend as a headrest, a small smile on his face. Mark briefly let him imagine what it would be like if that was him and Donghyuck instead. His heart beat an uneven rhythm. 

“Jeno and I are starting a game of spin the bottle and wanted to know if you’re in?” There wasn’t time for him to answer before Renjun grabbed his hand in one, Jaemin’s in the other and took off, Jeno and Donghyuck let to trail behind. 

There was no way this was going to end well Mark thought. 

 

Once again, his suspicions were proven right. 

By the looks of it, Renjun and Jeno had managed to round up a couple more people Mark didn’t recognize - probably classmates of Sicheng. 

“Sit,” Renjun ordered, tugging on Mark arm from where he was already sitting cross legged on the floor. Mark looked to Jaemin for help only to find his friend already sitting between Jeno and some girl he didn’t know - betrayal at its finest. 

Seeing no way out of it, Mark took a seat beside Renjun and wished for time to fast forward. 

In the end, it ended up being a pretty harmless game. Jaemin got a quick kiss from some girl Mark remembered being introduced to when visiting the dance club once. In turn, Jaemin kissed Doyoung’s (or was it Dongyoung? Mark couldn’t remember his name from five minutes ago) cheek shyly. Renjun and Jeno kissed until people starting yelling at them to get a room. Mark complained about the game being rigged, to which Renjun just winked in response. 

Then it was his turn. Watching the bottle turn Mark couldn’t help but feel as if he were in a movie, the bottle slowly coming to a stop pointing exactly where he hoped it wouldn’t. The person at the other end was nobody other than Lee Donghyuck himself. 

Immediately, Mark decided Donghyuck was perhaps drunker than he thought, as the other didn’t react other than moving across the circle so he was face to face with Mark. Time was definitely moving slower, Mark was sure of it. He barely had the courage to look Donghyuck in the eyes.

“We don’t have to, you know,” Donghyuck whispered only loud enough for Mark to hear.

It took Mark a second to find his voice. “No. It’s okay. Unless you don’t want to,” he said more out of fear than anything. The last thing he would want to do is force Donghyuck into something he wasn’t comfortable with. 

Mark had to admit, this was not how he pictured his first kiss with Donghyuck would go. He thought it would probably take place after he confessed, breathless and each reaching for each other once they both realized their feelings were reciprocated. But that was only in his dreams. 

Now Donghyuck was the one to lean forward placing his lips softly over Mark’s. It was if time stopped. Mark had imagined this moment more than he would care to admit, but nothing prepared him for this. Donghyuck’s lips were soft and slightly wet from when he had ran his tongue over them before leaning in. The younger hummed softly as he breathed out into the kiss. 

Mark felt pure bliss run through his veins. There were fireworks going off somewhere and Mark thought he could feel the stars shaking. He briefly wondered why he had waited so long to kiss his best friend. 

All too fast, time sped up and Donghyuck pulled back. Mark’s lips were cold from the loss of contact, but they were still tingling. He wanted to reach up and touch them, see if this was real life, but it was then he remembered he was still at a party, surrounded by his friends and strangers alike, so he kept his hands by his sides. 

Donghyuck gave him an uncharacteristically shy smile before shifting back to his seat. 

Something jabbed his ribs and Mark turned to see Renjun raising his eyebrows and not-so-successfully trying to wiggle them.  _ Fuck you, _ Mark mouthed back. Trying to ignore the rapid rhythm his heart was beating, he turned his attention back to the game.

Later, when Jaemin passed him a new drink, Mark didn’t waste a moment before downing it. Anything to clear the thoughts from his head.

(ii.)

“How long have you been in love with Donghyuck?” Renjun asked, perched on his bed. Mark choked. The younger didn’t say anything, just looked expectantly, waiting for an answer. 

This was not what he was expecting when Renjun asked if he wanted to come over and hang out. He had been expecting video games, maybe some pizza. “I don’t think I signed up for an interrogation,” Mark said calmly, trying to play it cool. His ears couldn’t help but betray him, he could feel them turning red, a bright beacon to let Renjun know he was right on the money. He ducked his head into his lap where he sat on the bedroom floor. 

Sometimes his friend was too smart for his own good. Knowing there was no way out of it by the look on Renjun’s face Mark sighed. He wasn’t too sure when he fell for Donghyuck and he made sure to tell Renjun as much. “I just started realizing how bight his smile was, you know? How he demands all the attention when he walks into a room and how his eyes shine when he talks about something he really loves,” Mark stopped himself once he realized how cheesy it sounded. He ducked his head, embarrassed. He had never admitted any of that out loud. 

He had barely allowed himself to admit it until recently. Somehow it made it feel even more real. 

Renjun just started at him, amusement dripping off his face, “Dude, you are so whipped.”

Mark couldn’t deny it; he sorta wished he could. At some point he had fully given his heart to Lee Donghyuck, not realizing it until the deed had been done. He might as well hand over his heart in a box labelled yours.

As much as he tried, Mark couldn't pin down the moment these feelings had started. Maybe it had even been the first day they were introduced (which happened to be the first day Renjun and Jeno met, so maybe he wasn’t alone in his feelings). 

All Mark was certain of was somewhere along the line he had fallen for his friend and now he didn’t know how to deal with it. By now it was as natural as breathing.

That, and it was nearly two weeks into his summer break. Mark felt useless. 

“Are you gonna go for it?” Renjun’s question jarred Mark back out of his thoughts. 

If Mark was being completely honest with himself, he wasn’t planning on it. He was afraid of rejection, afraid he would only fall more in love just for Donghyuck to move away and move on. On the other hand, Mark was growing tired of sitting, waiting, watching opportunities pass him by. “I’m not sure. I mean, we’ve graduated. He’s probably leaving in the fall.”

“So?” That was something Mark had come to appreciate about Renjun, he never hesitated to call out bullshit and weak excuses - although sometimes it caused more harm than help. In the early stages of their friendship it had caused plenty of unnecessary arguments, but now both knew how to deal with each other and issues rarely came up.

“So he’d leave, probably find someone better at his fancy new school and I’d still be here, let behind and forgotten about in no time,” Mark muttered, not making eye contact. His voice sounded pathetic to his own ears. 

“Mark,” Renjun all but whispered, the tone in the room changed and without looking up Mark knew the look Renjun was giving him, concern and sympathy all over his face. That was the other thing Mark appreciated about his friend, for all his blunt words he had a soft heart.  

“ _ Mark _ ,” Renjun repeated again softly, moving off the bed so he was facing the older. He grabbed Mark’s chin between his fingers, forcing the other to look up. “You can’t do this to yourself. You don’t know that for sure and you never will unless you take the chance.”

Mark stayed silent, not having anything to say. Renjun was right of course. That didn’t make him any less scared. 

“I know it’s part of your self-defense, but you can’t live your whole life like this you know.” Renjun moved so he was seated on the floor, pressed against Mark, shoulder to shoulder. Out of instinct, Mark lowered his head onto Renjun’s shoulder and felt Renjun’s hand begin to run through his hair. The effect it had was immediate and calming. Mark could feel all the tension run out his body, flooding out of his feet into the floor hopefully never to be seen again. 

It had become a habit for them, the physical comfort. At first, it had made Mark uneasy, but Renjun was at times could be very affectionate, especially if he was upset over something, and over time Mark found himself growing accustomed to it. Craving it sometimes even. It helped him feel grounded, safe.

They sat in comfortable silence for some time until Mark grew bold enough to ask his own question. “When did you know you were in love with Jeno?”

Immediately he felt Renjun tense up behind him, but there was no immediate reply. Mark could tell something about the question was a touchy subject. 

“We haven’t said it yet, you know?” Mark hadn’t. Perhaps it was just something he had assumed, since their feelings for each other were obvious from one glance at the couple. 

“It never really bothered me before. But now…” Renjun paused to take a shaky breath. More out of instinct that anything, Mark wrapped his arms around Renjun’s waist, knowing it would be a comfort to the other boy. “Now I can’t help wondering if he doesn’t feel the same way. I-I feel like our relationship has an expiry date and he’s gonna...end things before he leaves in the fall.”

“You don’t know he’s leaving. I heard him and Donghyuck talking about maybe taking a year off, figuring things out.” Mark couldn’t help but cringe, saying the exact words he knew he wanted to hear himself. So what if he was a bit selfish?  
Without having to look at the other, he could feel Renjun shake his head. “He’s leaving. He got into his top choice. He hasn’t told anyone but me by the way, so don’t go spreading that,” Renjun added the last part as if it was an afterthought. This information didn’t surprise Mark. After all, Jeno was one of the top students in their class, nobody (except maybe Jaemin) worked harder than him. 

“Well aren’t we a mess.” Renjun didn’t say anything in response and they grew still, a silence forming between them again. 

Mark couldn’t help but truly wonder what Jeno’s intentions were. He had been the last addition to their friend group and by extension, someone Mark wasn’t super close with. Jeno was someone who kept to himself a bit more than everyone else, but Renjun seemed to draw him out of his shell. At times Jeno seemed more cautious in situations, but Mark knew Renjun was spontaneous if anything. They were a good balance and complemented each others personality, anyone could see that. 

The last thing Mark wanted was for Renjun to get heartbroken. He couldn’t help but feel slightly protective over the younger. Even before things had even started between Renjun and Jeno, Mark has done his best to caution his friend, but by then it was already too late. 

Mark figured he could relate on some level. 

“Okay! That’s it, pity party’s over!” Renjun spoke up, already back to his normal self after a few minutes of sulking. He picked his head up off Mark’s shoulder. “Wanna order pizza?”

“Why not.” Mark shrugged, trying to push any unwanted thoughts to the back of his mind. He already spent enough time moping around during the summer.

(iii.)

“Jaemin and Donghyuck should be here soon,” Renjun said. The sound came out muffled by the mountain of blankets the boy was currently buried under. 

That got Mark’s attention. “Donghyuck’s coming too?”

Since school had started and their friend group formed, they had started a monthly movie night where the five of them (sometimes six if Chenle could make it) got together to eat too many sweets, build a giant pillow fort and try to cross a movie or two off their ever-growing list. Hence the pile of blankets Mark had piled on Renjun - who had been sitting unsuspectingly on the couch - after carrying them all downstairs.

Now that it was summer, they found themselves busier. Jeno was gone camping with his family for the week and Mark hadn’t heard anything from Donghyuck so he had just assumed there were already other plans in the picture. He guessed wrong apparently. 

“Uh yeah…” Renjun managed to emerge from the booby trap of blankets and began to follow Mark back upstairs to grab the snacks. “Did you guys fight or something?”

“No! No, it’s fine. I just didn’t know,” Mark said honestly. Truth be told, summer was busy and he hadn’t seen Donghyuck much lately and much to his dismay his crush on the younger wasn’t shrinking with the lack of contact. Instead he found himself missing Donghyuck more and more. 

“Well now you do.” Renjun grabbed the bags of chips and M&M’s from the counter, twirling around in a dramatic circle until heading back towards the stairs. 

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” Mark called out the moment Renjun started honest-to-god whistling. Suddenly it clicked. “You worked things out with Jeno, didn’t you?”

“Maybe,” Renjun said, drawing it out with a sweet smile, eyes sparkling. 

“That’s great!” 

“He said he wanted to leave it up to me. Didn’t want to leave and make me feel pressured to stay together if I didn’t think I could handle it. He also assured me he wasn’t gonna go off with someone else. He  _ also _ promised to visit me on as many weekends as possible.”

“Gross,” Mark said through a grin. He was happy that at least one of their love lives was going well.  Reaching, he grabbed the snacks from Renjun and placed them on the coffee table next to the drinks. Everything was set up, now they were just waiting on the others to show up. 

“You’re just mad because you’re too chicken to confess to Donghyuck and he’s too busy living with his head up his ass,” Renjun retaliated. Mark groaned. 

Before he could reply to Renjun the doorbell rang cutting him off. For a moment he made eye contact with Renjun before the other let out a mad cackle and turned to run for the door.

“Honey, I’m home.” Mark could hear Jaemin’s voice ring through the house. A moment later there was a thunder of footsteps and another moment later the room was crowded by the presence of Renjun, Jaemin and Donghyuck.

Donghyuck and summer didn’t get along very well if the hoodie he was wearing was any evidence. It must have been nearly 30 degrees out. Mark felt hot just looking at him, he tried to blame the feeling fully on the sweater.

“So?” Jaemin broke the silence, he quirked his eyebrow at Mark. Mark chose to ignore him. “What’s on the menu for tonight?”

“Some shitty horror movie Duckie probably found on the side of the road,” Renjun said as he grabbed said movie from Donghyuck’s grasp, popping it open to grab the disk.

“Johnny gave it to me before he left last year.” Donghyuck placed a hand over his heart as if he had just been horribly offended. 

Renjun snorted, “I stand corrected. Some shitty horror movie  _ Johnny _ found on the side of the road and kindly gave to his brother as a parting gift.” 

After a solid fifteen minutes of Jaemin fighting Renjun for the fluffiest blanket (they decided to sit next to each other and share it anyways) and Mark desperately trying to stop Donghyuck from eating all the chocolate before the movie even started, they found themselves situated and ready to press play. 

“Where’s the remote?” 

Renjun’s question was met with silence for an answer. Mark ran his hands around himself on the couch trying to feel for the remote, brushing against Donghyuck’s thigh in the process. 

“Mark touched me!” the younger cried out. 

“Stop being such a brat,” Mark laughed, pushing the youngers shoulder. “Now stand up, so I can make sure you weren’t hiding the remote under your ass.”

“So you admit I have a nice butt, Mark Lee?” 

Renjun snickered as Mark froze realizing what he had done. 

“I never said anything of the type. You’re  _ such _ a pain,” Mark said weakly without much malice, mostly trying to hide how flustered he was. A smirk was evident on Donghyuck’s face.

“You walked right into that one,” Jaemin commented. With that, the search for the remote continued on. In the end, it was Jaemin’s idea to check under the couch which resulted in success. Mark figured it must have been pushed under during the great blanket war just moments earlier. 

Finally, ten minutes later, they were back on the couch (order: Mark, Donghyuck, Jaemin, Renjun), the opening credits of the movie playing on screen. 

Horror movies didn’t tend to bother Mark much. Sure the jump scares got him, but he usually found the story too unreal to believe anyways, so it never managed to instill much horror in him. He was the same way with haunted houses too; most of the time he laughed his way through at his friends reactions. 

Donghyuck on the other hand, seemed to be having the worst time of his life. If you asked Mark, the movie wasn’t even that scary but yet there Donghyuck was, clinging to Mark’s arm like his life depended on it. At a particularly good jumpscare (that even startled Mark) Donghyuk took the opportunity to his his face in the crook of Mark’s neck, effectively sending the older into cardiac arrest. 

He hoped the way he tensed up wasn’t evident to the younger, but it was hard to think about anything when he could feel Donghyuck’s warm breath on his neck.  _ This is how I die huh?  _ Mark thought. Death by Donghyuck, not a bad way to go. 

It wasn’t until Donghyuck tried to bury closer, his warm lips coming into contact with Mark’s neck did the older attempt to push him off. More of out self-defence and for his sanity since Mark didn’t want to do anything stupid. “Why don’t you cling to Jaemin?” Mark asked, hoping his voice appeared steadier than he felt. He swore he could feel Renjun glaring daggers at him. 

In Mark’s defence it wasn’t his fault. If he had to spend one more second with Donghyuck hanging off his arm he wasn’t sure what he would do. And if Mark had one thing, it was the common sense to not to anything stupid in front of his crush or friends. 

Donghyuck took one look at Mark, pouted, his puppy dog eyes making an appearance, before throwing himself back against Mark. He was going to die an early death and Donghyuck would be the cause, Mark was absolutely sure of it. Not only did he not have the courage to push the younger off again when he was holding on like a leech, but he was scared Donghyuck would be able to hear the rapid beat his heart was beating in his chest if Donghyuck moved the slightest. 

Hell, he was scared Renjun would be able to hear it. 

Mark turned his attention back to the movie only but after one last glance at Donghyuck who was now wrapped around his arm, head resting on Mark’s shoulder. Donghyuck’s eyelashes fanned against his cheeks from where his eyes were closed, avoiding the horrors on screen.  Mark could see faint eyeshadow that shimmered when Donghyuck’s eyes moved behind his closed lids. As Mark’s eyes dropped they landed on the beauty marks dotting Donghyuck’s honey skin. His lips were curled up in the corners slightly, the smile catching Mark off guard. 

All he could think about was how soft Donghyuck’s lips had been when they had- Mark stopped his thoughts before they could wander further. Now was not the time to think about kissing his best friend again. 

Mark was so fucked.

(iv.)

It may have been past 3 in the afternoon, but if you asked Mark it was too early for this. Sure, a pool party at Chenle’s sounded like a great idea, it was hotter than the desert outside. The reality of it though was something Mark had not thought through very clearly before agreeing. 

It was only the third time he had been to Chenle’s house - mansion really. The Chinese boy was almost like a little brother to Renjun, so understanbly they spend more time hanging out here together, but there were a couple occasions where Renjun had invited Mark along. 

This time though, it wasn’t only Mark. With his parents out of town for the week, Chenle had offered his house as home base for a barbeque Renjun had been trying to plan for quite some time now. The usual crew had gathered, which meant Donghyuck was there - to Mark’s joy or dismay he hadn’t decided yet. Even Sicheng, Johnny and a couple of their friends had managed to make it since none of them had work.  

It just so happened that it was one of the hottest days of the summer so far - a “scorcher” in the words of the weatherman. It just so happened that Chenle had a pool in his backyard - mansions were like that. It just so happened Donghyuck was currently swimming laps around Jeno in the pool, effectively causing Mark’s brain to short circuit. 

Mark didn’t heard Johnny approach until he spoke up. “What’s up, Champ?”

“Not much,” Mark said calmly, hoping it wasn’t obvious he had been staring at the older boys brother, since he was currently shirtless in the pool.

“Why don’t you go take a swim and cool off? All your friends are.” 

Johnny was right, Mark watched as Jeno had seemingly had enough and threw his arm around Donghyuck dragging his head under the water. Chenle laughing from where he had just jumped into the pool.

“He’s not going to bite...unless you want him too.” Johnny laughed as Mark paled. Mark hated the feeling that he had been caught crushing on Donghyuck by Johnny of all people. “I’m kidding, Marky. Go have fun.” The next moment Johnny was gone, walking back towards where Sicheng and another brown haired boy were standing on the porch. Mark didn’t even have time to fight back against the use of his childhood nickname. 

Taking Johnny’s advice and honestly just wanting to cool down, Mark stripped down to his pair of black swim trunks and made his way over to where his friends were playing around in the water. He jumped in immediately, while the water wasn’t cold per se, it was colder than the air around him and managed to punch the air out of his lungs. Resurfacing, he found Jaemin staring at him, pink hair plastered against his head, almost covering his eyes. A laugh fought its way out of his mouth. 

“Took you long enough,” the younger boy joked, flicking water in Mark’s direction. 

“Chicken fight!” Chenle called out as soon as he noticed Mark had joined them, an evil grin on his face. A range of positive reactions sprouted from his friends and next thing Mark knew Renjun was on this shoulders ready to face Jeno and Donghyuck. Since Jaemin opted out from playing the remaining boys played rock, paper, scissors to see who bypass to face the winner of the first round and be their referee. 

Chenle won (“Luck of the youngest,” Renjun claimed) and swam off to the side, ready to call the battle into motion. 

Mark thanked his lucky stars that rock, paper, scissors had worked in his favour so he was paired with Renjun and not Donghyuck. If Mark’s brain hadn’t stopped working before, having Donghyuck perched on his shoulders would have definitely been the end. 

The battle ended quicker than Mark thought it would, Renjun pulling Donghyuck off Jeno’s shoulders in a matter of moments. He may have been the smallest out of them, but everyone was well aware he was the most ruthless. Sure, Donghyuck might have been a fair match for the boy, but Renjun wasn’t ticklish. 

“Fuck you,” Donghyuck said without much malice in his voice, attempting once again to pull Renjun off Mark’s shoulders, but this time by pulling at Renjun’s leg from where he was floating in the water. Renjun retaliated by kicking water in Donghyuck’s direction with his other foot effectively soaking the red head all over again. 

Mark tried his best not to stare. He really did. With the sun shining down on them Donghyuck looked absolutely ethereal. Sure his hair plastered to his head made him look like a drowned rat, but Mark couldn’t help but be anything but endeared. He looked like he was glowing, grin on his lips, laugher ringing out. Mark couldn’t help but be drawn in, like the sun’s gravity slowly pulling all the planets in. 

A tug to his hair brought him back to reality and Mark found himself face to face with Donghyuck. He had gotten so wrapped up in his thoughts he didn’t realize Donghyuck had caught him staring. Thankfully Renjun stepped in to save his dumbass before he spent the next half hour zoned out thinking about Dongyhuck’s beauty.  

“My turn!” Chenle shrieked (it was like his voice only had one volume: loud) before launching himself onto Jeno’s back. “You’re going down, Huang.”

Turns out Chenle couldn’t have been more wrong. Once again, Renjun remained victorious and Chenle found himself floating beside Jeno in the pool.

“Don’t you know you’re supposed to let the baby win, Renjun? You’re heartless.”

“Hey!” Chenle protested and wasted no time retaliating against Jeno for the comment, trying (and failing) to drag the larger boy underwater. He was only successful when Renjun decided to join in, both of them dragging Jeno under with them. Mark couldn’t help but laugh at the antics of his friends. He wished some things would never change. 

The tussle between the three was interrupted when Sicheng called out to Renjun for help, something about not being able to find all the food they packed. With a grumble of complaint Renjun pulled himself out of the pool and took off to help his brother. 

A moment later Jeno and Chenle were summoned by Jaemin to join in a game of frisbee against him and Johnny. 

A moment later Mark found himself alone with Donghyuck in the pool. 

He barely had time to think before Donghyuck declared a race to the other end of the pool and took off leaving Mark to play catch up. Mark threw himself against the small waves Donghyuck had created, making a fair attempt at beating the other to the other end of the pool. In the end, his valiant effort wasn’t enough to make up for the headstart Donghyuck had given himself. Mark complained to Donghyuck as much. 

“Poor sport,” Donghyuck said, reaching to grab a pool noodle that was sitting on the ledge and attempting to hit Mark with it. 

“Hey!” Out of instinct, Mark grabbed onto the pool noodle and used all his strength to pull Donghyuck within arms reach. It ended up being easier than expected, the water helping to float Donghyuck over until suddenly he was  _ too _ close. 

Mark wanted nothing more than to wipe the shit eating grin off of Donghyuck’s face. 

Much like before, it felt like time slowed down as Mark subconsciously leaned forward into the younger boys space. He looked up to see Donghyuck’s wide eyes staring back, blush lightly dusting his cheeks. Not able to hold eye contact, Mark’s eyes dropped to Donghyuck’s lips which were parted, as if inviting Mark to place his own on them. 

Something brushed against Mark’s hip causing him to startle. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Donghyuck’s hand retreat and immediately Mark snapped back to the present. 

What had he been about to do?

Here he was, standing in the middle of a pool, about to kiss his crush in front of all his friends at a party. This time, the look on Donghyuck’s face was nothing other than pure terror. Mark couldn’t believe he had been this stupid. 

“I’m so sorry,” he choked out, turning to the nearest edge to pull himself out of the pool. Anywhere away from Donghyuck who most certainly hated him now. Mark’s heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest and at the moment he wanted nothing more. Anything to put him out of his misery. 

Mark registered Donghyuck calling out behind him, but he didn’t stop to look. He didn’t think he could deal with the look on Donghyuck’s face again. Shaking his head, Mark pushed past Renjun, ignoring when he asked what was wrong. Mark was too weak to admit he had just ruined one of his closest friendships. 

Without turning around Mark rushed out the door leaving behind a confused Renjun and a hurt Donghyuck. 

(v.)

It was nearing the end of summer and Mark couldn’t help but feel slightly claustrophobic.

Much like the beginning of summer, his days were spend usually in the company of friends or doing yard work around town trying to make some spending money. Although months had already passed, he felt as if nothing had changed. 

He still hadn’t grown the balls to confess to Donghyuck and Donghyuck seemed oblivious as always. It’s not like they had talked much after the incident at Chenle’s house  anyways. Although Mark missed his friend, he wasn’t sure how to bring up the topic without having to admit his feelings and based of Donghyuck’s reaction that conversation wouldn’t end well. 

Renjun and Jeno were getting along better than ever and Mark couldn’t help but be slightly jealous. He wasn’t really he told himself. He was happy for his best friend. He just wished his love life could relate. 

Watching the clock tick over, Mark wished he could freeze time, even making it slow down would be enough. 

Everything was too much. Soon enough summer would be over and university would be starting and Donghyuck would be gone and Mark would be alone, the gap between them growing even larger. Mark wished that didn’t have to be the case. 

_ If you don’t do something about it how will you know? _ Mark could practically hear Renjun in his head. For all he felt, Mark had never really considered himself brave enough to confess, too certain it would only end in heartbreak on his end and not wanting to wreak one of his closest friendships. But it seemed to have already gotten there, so what did he have to lose?

It was getting to the point where Mark wanted to do something,  _ anything _ . He was tired of standing around and letting life pass him by. Last time he had taken Renjun’s advice and gone to the party The Kiss happened, so really, what was the worst that could happen? 

He would apologize for what had happened and Chenle’s and explain why he acted out, confessing his feelings in the process. Donghyuck deserved that much at least. Mark missed him like crazy and felt awful for practically ignoring him (although, Donghyuck hadn’t reached out either).

Like lightning, Mark felt sudden courage take hold. He was ready to confess to his crush of six years; in fact, he felt as if he had been ready for seven years. Rolling over to grab his phone Mark noticed he already had two messages from Donghyuck.

**from Hyuckie:** hey wanna go for a walk?

**from Hyuckie:** if u arent busy or sleeping already

**from Mark:** sure

**from Mark:** meet at the usual place?

By the time Mark neared the tree, he could already see Donghyuck’s form sitting under it. Walks weren’t really their thing, but on the odd day after school, when Donghyuck’s mind was overrun with stress and anxieties, he would ask Mark to go on a walk. Mark could never refuse and he never asked unnecessary questions, which is why he figured Donghyuck prefered his company to anyone else in their friend group when it came to things like these.   

Sometimes Donghyuck would talk about what was on his mind; other times not. Mark never pushed more, he never wanted to overstep his bounds and break his friends trust. 

He wondered what it was on Donghyuck’s mind this time. 

It must be something serious if it was urgent enough for Donghyuck to want to meet at this time of night, especially after they had gone nearly a week without talking.

“Hey,” Mark spoke up as he approached, not wanting to startle the other. 

“Hey yourself.” Donghyuck took Mark’s hand as it was offered and pull himself off the ground. Without saying anything else Donghyuck took off, leaving Mark to trail behind. 

Unsure of why exactly Donghyuck had called his out, Mark didn’t break the silence that settled. He wasn’t sure if it was anything the boy wanted to talk about or if he simply needed the company. While Mark wanted to apologize he also wanted to wait for the right time due to the nature of the apology. If Donghyuck had something bothering him, Mark wasn’t about to drop even more problems on him. 

They walked for a good fifteen minutes in which Mark observed Donghyuck constantly reaching up to play with his hair, a nervous tic Mark had only picked up after being his friend for years. Mark wasn’t too sure what to think. Donghyuck was usually never this quiet, even when there was something troubling him. In those cases he often resorted to humor, but he had yet to open his mouth since they had met up. Maybe he was still mad about the incident and was waiting for Mark to make the first move. 

Night had fallen over the course of their walk and Mark found the darkness comforting more than anything. Mark slowed his pace until he came to a stop, he figured he should say something. “Hyuck,” his voice came out softly, scared anything louder would scare off the younger. 

It worked to get his attention though and Mark saw Donghyuck turn to make his way back a couple paces to stand in front of the older, shifting from foot to foot, a hand twirling the hair behind his ear. 

Silence remained between them as Mark waited to see if Donghyuck would speak up. It was beyond obvious something was bothering him and even it Mark didn’t want to overstep, he wanted to know his friend was alright, he wanted them to be ok again.

Finally Donghyuck broke the silence after an inhale that even Mark could hear. “I have something to tell you.” Mark simply nodded, waiting for the other to go on. “I like you.”

Out of all the things Mark was expecting, those three words were nowhere on his radar. In fact, he wasn’t sure he heard Donghyuck right. “What?” Donghyuck should be mad at Mark shouldn’t he? 

“I like you Mark Lee. Like in the I wanna hold your hand and kiss you kind of way.” Donghyuck’s voice turned quieter and the words seemed to stumble out of his mouth. “It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way or if this makes you uncomfortable. We can just forget this ever happened and I’ll move on, but I needed to tell you.”

“Donghyuck, I like you too.”

“Are you fucking with me, Mark?”

“No, I’m serious. Ask Renjun I’m sure he’d be glad to expose me.” A pause. Mark swore he could see the stars reflected in Donghyuck’s eyes. “I’ve liked you pretty much from the first moment we met, Hyuck.”

Donghyuck’s eyes opened with shock and he took a step back. “That’s like, nearly six years. Why didn’t you say anything dumbass?”

“I never let myself think it would be mutual. Plus I didn’t want to say something now and have you leave to university and find someone else new and bet-”

“Who said anything about me leaving?” Donghyuck asked, cutting Mark off. 

“Huh?”

“I didn’t get into any of the programs I wanted. My grades weren’t high enough, so I’m taking a year off to upgrade them.”

“Oh.” Mark took a moment to process what had just been said and realized what that meant. “ _ Oh _ .”

“Yeah oh. Why didn’t you just ask about it if you were so worried?”

_ I didn’t want to have to face losing you. _ “I don’t know.”

“Wait, then why did you run off like that at Chenle’s? I thought I thought I accidently misread the situation and disgusted you instead. I didn’t even know if you would reply to my texts today.”

“I thought I disgusted  _ you _ ! You looked so...horrified that I almost kissed you.”

Donghyuck laughed as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing and Mark joined in considering this is not at all the way he saw this conversation going. “I was scared because you pulled back all shocked when I reached out to grab your waist. I thought I misstepped and grossed you out.” 

Mark laughed again, not believing what he was hearing. 

“So,” Donghyuck said, raising an eyebrow in question. 

Mark wasn’t sure what the other wanted from him. He was still processing Donghyuck’s confession amidst the fact that he was  _ staying _ . “So?”

“Do I have to do everything myself?” Donghyuck sounded so esaperrated, so himself that Mark could do nothing other than laugh once again. He hadn’t laughed this much in almost a week.  

“Well now that you know I’m not leaving and even if I was, there’s no way I’d find someone better than you...Will you be my boyfriend, Mark Lee?”

Oh, that’s what he meant. Mark nodded dumbly after a couple seconds. “Yes,” he said breathless, a smile plastered across his face. When he looked up he saw the same mirrored on Donghyuck’s face. 

_ He’s brighter than the sun.  _

 

“I’m sorry by the way,” Donghyuck spoke up. They were on the way back to their respective houses, walking so close that everytime their arms brushed Mark felt shivers run through his fingers. Without skipping a beat, Donghyuck reached across to grab Mark’s hand, not missing the chance to intertwine their fingers. Suddenly, Mark was grateful for the cover of night - this way Donghyuck couldn’t notice how red his face and ears grew. A smile finding its home on his face again. 

Mark froze; those weren’t words you wanted to hear from your crush who just confessed to you. “For what?” 

“That our first kiss had to be like that.”

That wasn’t what he had been expecting to hear. Although, tonight seemed to be a night of unexpected things. Mark refused to meet Donghyuck’s eyes, mumbling something quietly that wasn’t audible. 

Donghyuck took a step towards the older, using his index finger to tilt Mark’s head so he had no choice but to look at his  _ boyfriend _ . Every thought flew out of Mark’s head the second their eyes met. They had never been this close before. He could see every eyelash, every beauty mark, every imperfection on Donghyuck’s face. “What was that?” Donghyuck asked, softly, curiously, so unlike himself. 

“Can we,” Mark took the chance to wrap his arms around Donghyuck’s waist, suddenly growing bold, pulling him ever closer. Mark smiled to himself knowing this was all Donghyuck had wanted to do in the pool. From this distance, Mark had to look down to meet Donghyuck’s eyes and for once he wasn’t afraid. His eyes flickered to Donghyuck’s lips, parted, before taking a slow breath, “try again?”

Donghyuck’s face was unreadable and Mark thought for a moment he might have overstepped, maybe Donghyuck wanted to wait (which would be more than ok with Mark, he had waited six years after all). 

Before he could say anything, Donghyuck had wound a hand around to the back of Mark’s neck and pulled him down, while leaning forward on his toes to meet him in the middle. 

Their lips met. 

It was soft, slow, innocent, but Mark still felt fireworks run through his bloodstream and shivered - from the cold or something else, he couldn’t tell. His eyes fluttered close and he could hear Donghyuck hum softly. 

Breaking the kiss, he hugged Donghyuck tighter, tucking him under his chin - something Mark had always wanted to do. Donghyuck’s hair tickled his nose, making him feel the need to sneeze. It smelt faintly of flowers and Mark couldn’t be happier. 

For once, with Donghyuck between his arms, Mark felt like he had all the time in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> this fic was...a mess lmao what first started as some 5+1 prompt (hence some of the formatting i ended up keeping) n for a different ship has now morphed into this through the power of editing 
> 
> theres a lot i wanted to add and build on but i wanted to make sure i Finished it so i kept things simple and sweet! 
> 
> either way i hope u enjoyed it! if u leave a comment it will make my day n i'll love u forever but regardless thank you for taking the time to read this, i hope you liked it!!
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/KIHYUKlE) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/kihyukie)


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